


Confidence

by Dachimotsu



Category: My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic
Genre: F/F, Foals, Girls Kissing, Kissing, Lesbian, Shoujo-ai, ponies
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-08
Updated: 2016-01-08
Packaged: 2018-05-12 14:03:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,138
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5668630
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dachimotsu/pseuds/Dachimotsu
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A really old fic I wrote for "My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic", back when I was a hardcore brony. Ships Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon while delving into their relationship and telling a story of why they became friends. Kind of a tear-jerker, I'm told.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Confidence

**Author's Note:**

> It should be noted that this was written before Season 2+ ever aired, so any inconsistencies caused by post Season 1 episodes should be ignored.

Silver Spoon sighed as she played with the food that had been brought to her. It wasn't the first time the chefs at that restaurant had gotten her order wrong, but the first time they did, she got on the waiter's case about it, and that made her feel really embarrassed. If she were more assertive, she would have demanded he take it back to correct the mistake. Instead, she sat and stared at it, hoping she would somehow find it in her to bare its taste. She was paying for the meal either way. Maybe she'd just box it up and take it with her. Maybe one of her parents will eat it during the very little time they're home.

Silver never got to spend much time with her parents. They were always very busy with their jobs, but it was because of those jobs that Silver could have anything she wanted. Despite the negligence that was really there, Silver actually felt guilty, as if it were somehow her fault. She felt spoiled, given money by her parents to buy whatever food or clothing she liked. Her feelings of guilt were born from that, believing her parents felt obligated to simply give her money rather than make her earn it, like other foals. An "allowance", she remembered it was called.

Although, it's not like it would have made much of a difference. Whether she was given the money or earned it, she would have continued to do as she'd been: eating out at fancy restaurants, every single day. Silver didn't have any friends. She was too shy and introverted for that, afraid that her rich parents and lack of discipline made her different from them. She also feared being used for her parents' wealth.

Her life was a very dull one. No real hobbies, no friends, and no parents outside of the late evenings when they came home, too exhausted to spend any time with her. Boredom consumed her. And to quell that boredom, she ate. She loved to eat, but she was far from a glutton. Because she could afford it, she would always go to the fanciest of restaurants.

The foods she ate were of the utmost quality. Filling, but not fattening, Silver never gained excessive weight. This gave her a very refined taste palette. In time, she found that she could even guess the recipes of the foods she ate, ingredients and all. She considered herself an expert food critic.

And in doing so, she earned her cutie mark.

\----------

At Silver Spoon's own insistence, she attended school like a normal filly. Her parents wanted her to be home-schooled with a private tutor, afraid that the peer pressure of public schooling would be too much for their shy daughter. But Silver wouldn't have it. She wanted to be normal, even if it meant suffering for it.

A new school year had recently started. Cheerilee was still a teacher, but the students in her respective classroom would be different, as they were every year. Silver had her for class this time around. She'd heard that Cheerilee was the nicest teacher in Ponyville, even if she could be somewhat redundant, but that was just a result of her perkiness.

Silver didn't recognize any of her classmates, which is natural, since she'd never really seen any foals besides herself, other than when she stared out her bedroom window. There was a blue pegasus filly with a bow and arrow cutie mark. There was a yellow earth pony with a pink ribbon in her mane, who looked very excited to be in school. And on the opposite side of the classroom... was a pink earth pony, who looked downright miserable.

The first day of school was very exhilarating for Silver. She'd heard stories about group activities, which she groaned at the thought of, but none were scheduled for that day. The first days of each school year were always about going over the syllabus and schedule and such. Cheerilee pulled out the old cliché of assigning homework on the first day, that being to write an essay on what each student did during their summer. Silver worried she wouldn't have much to write about.

 

Once class was dismissed, Silver headed straight for the fillies' restroom. She'd needed to go since much earlier in the day, but was far too embarrassed about asking to be excused for it. Plus, she didn't want to miss any of what the teacher was saying. After finishing up, she went over to the sinks to wash her hooves. But while she was doing so...

SLAM!

The door to the restroom bust open, and an extremely flustered pink earth pony came barging in. Silver jumped at the sudden intrusion and stared at the invader with a gaping mouth, her hooves still slightly wet. The pink filly was clearly hoping she wouldn't find anypony inside, based on the equally surprised look in her eyes.

"What are YOU staring at?!" she demanded to know.

Silver averted her eyes. "... N... Nopony..."

"Don't lie to me!!" she began to approach Silver. "Who ELSE would you be staring at?! Are you gonna make fun of me, too?!"

"P-please... I don't know you... I..." Silver began to back up until she was against the wall.

"You think you're better than me, don't you? Everypony does! What's your cutie mark for, huh? Ooh, I'll bet it's for something amazing. Unlike MINE!

"Well?!" the pink pony was in Silver's face now. "Are you gonna say something to me? Or are you too... important for me? Too... importa... egh..." Her eyes began to water up. She did her best to fight the tears, but after holding them in the whole day, there was nowhere left to keep them. They had to come out.

The pink filly began sobbing uncontrollably. Silver didn't know what to make of it. She herself was about to cry, but after seeing somepony else in such torment, she felt she didn't have the right to. Silver didn't just sit and watch, though. She knew if she did, it would only anger the pink pony even more. Instead, Silver reached over and placed one of her hooves on her shoulders. The pink pony gasped and jerked away, but it did stop some of the crying.

"Um..." Silver began, unsure how to handle the situation. "May I ask... what's wrong?"

"Oh. I'm so sorry..." the pink pony apologized as she wiped her tears away. "I shouldn't have yelled at you like that. I was just so angry, I couldn't..."

"No, no... it's fine. Um... I'm Silver Spoon." Silver felt it was proper to introduce herself.

"Silver... Spoon? So, your name matches your cutie mark too, huh?"

"Um, I guess. Then your name must be..." she looked over at the pink pony's flank. "... um... Metal Crown?"

"Heh, no. Diamond Tiara."

"Oh. Well, that's a much prettier name than what I thought. Now, could you tell me what's wrong?"

Diamond's ears lowered. She turned around and undid her saddlebag, dropping it to the floor. Opening it up, she reached in and pulled out a piece of jewelry. A steel tiara, with small round diamonds studded to the very top of each loop. It looked just like Diamond's cutie mark.

"What's that?" Silver asked, rhetorically.

"I made it," Diamond answered. "For my mom..."

"Oh, wow. Really? It's really well-done! Looks very professional. I'm sure your mom will like it."

Diamond cringed at Silver's words. Did she say something wrong?

"I... um... I'm not..." Diamond fumbled her words around. "I can't give this to her."

"Why not?"

"I originally made it as a simple gift. It wasn't really supposed to be anything special. But when I finished it... my cutie mark appeared..."

"Oh. Well, that's good, right?"

"No, it's not!!" Diamond's anger had suddenly resurfaced. "I didn't want my cutie mark to be something so stupid! I wanted my destiny to be more exciting! Like, an opera-singing cutie mark, or something. I don't want to be a dumb ol' jewelry crafter!" The tone in Diamond's voice had slowly gone from angry, back to near-crying.

"But..." Silver began. "Who says that your destiny is controlled by your cutie mark? I bet there are lots of ponies whose jobs have nothing to do with their cutie marks."

"Oh, yeah right," Diamond scoffed as she wiped more tears from her eyes. "Like who?"

"Well, how about Miss Cheerilee? She's got those flowers, but she's a teacher."

"You weren't here last year, were you? She told us exactly how those flowers represent her being a teacher."

"Oh. Really...? Um... Well, there's that pegasus that delivers the mail... I think she has bubbles as a cutie mark. That doesn't have much to do with mail, right?"

"Yeah, I guess... What about you? What's your cutie mark mean?"

"Oh. Um... I, er... like to eat. Fancy foods. You know?" Diamond looked at her strangely. "I know it's not much of an 'occupation', but... I like it. I enjoy my hobby, and I like my cutie mark. And you should, too."

"Like your cutie mark?"

"No no... Yours. You should like your cutie mark. Being a jewelry crafter is nothing to be ashamed of. And it still doesn't have to dictate what you do with your life."

"I..." Diamond began averting her eyes and looking around the room. She didn't know whether to admit Silver was right, or to beat around the bush. "I don't... really know... I just..." Diamond put the tiara back in her bag, which she placed on her back. She silently left the room, glancing only once at Silver Spoon, who looked back at her with great concern.

 

\----------

 

The next day, on her way to school, Silver was stopped by a familiar voice calling to her from behind. "Silver Spoon! Wait up!"

Silver looked behind and saw Diamond Tiara galloping towards her, trying to catch up.

"Oh, hello Diamond," Silver greeted as Diamond neared. "Um... What is up?"

"Haha. You've never said 'what's up' before?"

Silver blushed.

"No, no, it's fine. We'll have plenty of time to get to know each other over the school year, right? Here, I want to give you something."

Diamond reached into her saddlebag, and pulled out a tiny pearl necklace. Silver stared at it. Each pearl was identical in size, shape, and shade. "Is that... for me?"

"Yeh, I may ih lash nigh," Diamond tried to say with the necklace between her teeth. She raised her head above Silver's, who reflexively lowered it. Diamond gently slipped the necklace over Silver Spoon's head until it was firmly wrapped around her neck. It fit perfectly. It wasn't loose, and it didn't stretch to reveal the fine nylon cord that held it together.

Silver Spoon should have felt grateful, but all she could feel was guilt. Once again, something nice had been simply given to her. She didn't feel as though she'd earned it. "Do you like it?" Diamond asked.

"Yes..." Silver quietly answered. "It's really pretty, and I'm sure you worked hard making it..."

"Actually, it was just as easy as making my tiara." Diamond pointed to her head, upon which lied the tiara she had made before. "Making jewelry really does come naturally to me. I thought a lot about what you said, and I realized... you were right."

"What?"

"About my cutie mark. You were right. I shouldn't have been so angry about it. It appeared for a reason. And that reason is because I'm special. I have a talent that very few other ponies have. A hobby that most find painful and daunting, I find extremely easy. I look forward to my destiny, and nopony is gonna tell me otherwise!"

Silver was genuinely surprised. She was amazed at how assertive and confident Diamond was compared to yesterday. Diamond looked as though she wanted to conquer all of Equestria.

"And that's why I made that necklace for you," Diamond continued. "It's a thank you gift. Thank you for helping me realize that I'm not worthless."

"Oh. Well, thank you for the gift. I'm glad that you're over that, then. I'd never even heard of anypony being ashamed of their cutie mark before. I guess it's a good thing that was just a phase."

"Uh... That's right! My cutie mark is AWESOME, and in a couple days, everypony will know it!"

"Huh? How?"

"I asked, um, my parents... to throw me a cute-ceañera, to celebrate me earning my cutie mark. I'm inviting everypony I know, including you!"

"Wow, that sounds like it could be kind of fun. I've never been to a cute see a year.. a... before."

"Hehe, 'ceañera'. Now come on, we're gonna be late for school."

Silver happily joined her first friend on the walk to their second day of school. But in the awkward silence, her mind began to wander, and a thought came to her. If Diamond was over her cutie mark, why hadn't she given the tiara to her mother like she said she would?

 

\----------

 

All day long, Silver and Diamond hung out with each other. They sat next to each other in the back of class so they could exchange notes and whispers without Cheerilee noticing. Silver had never spent so much time giggling in her life. She barely heard any of what the teacher was saying. For the first time in Silver's life, she was really having fun. She had a friend; somepony to talk to.

The end of class seemed to arrive much sooner than it did the day before. Diamond and Silver walked out of the school, still giggling to each other. "Heehee, and then," Silver continued, "the waiter seriously asked me if Venus Flytraps were actually from Venus!"

"Pfft! Bwahaha!" Diamond laughed. "What a moron!"

"Oof!" Silver grunted as she accidentally bumped into a large, gray filly wearing a bike helmet. "Oh, sorry!"

"Watch where yer goin', ya dork!" she shouted back at her.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to bump into you! I just--"

"Hey!" Diamond yelled as she got up in the brute's face. "Don't call my friend a dork, DORK!"

"Oh yeah?" the gray filly asked. "And what'll happen if I do?"

"Try it and find out!!"

"Checkered Flag!" came a harsh voice from behind them. A gray stallion, the gray filly's father no doubt, had come to pick his daughter up from school. "What did I tell you about picking on other foals?"

"Aww, I wasn't doin' nothin'!" Checkered Flag lied.

"I'll be the judge of that. Now hurry up, you've got practice in half an hour!"

Diamond Tiara stuck out her tongue and blew a raspberry at Checkered Flag, who was dragged away by her father. She smiled with victorious pride, then turned to Silver Spoon. "You alright?"

"Wow..." said Silver. "That mean filly was almost twice as big as you, and you stood up to her so... forcefully! You're so brave!"

"Heh, well... maybe. I don't let other ponies push me around. And you shouldn't either, Silver. Next time somepony gives you any trouble, just talk back to them!"

"Oh. Um... I, uh... I don't know, Diamond..."

"Hey, don't worry about it. I'll help you out. After all, you helped me. And that's what best friends do, right?"

"... W... What? Best... friends?"

"Well, yeah. We are best friends, aren't we?"

"Y... Yeah! We are!" Silver Spoon smiled very brightly. The phrase "best friend" sounded so much more fulfilling than just "friend". She hadn't considered the fact that having only one friend would make them your best friend by default. "So, uh... if we're best friends, does that mean we need a secret hoofshake?"

"A what?"

"A secret hoofshake. I see it on TV all the time. In shows like 'Rocket Ponies' and 'Hey, Arnie', the main characters and their best friends usually have some special hoofshake that they only do with each other."

"A secret hoofshake, huh? That sounds like it could be kind of cool. Let's go practice one!"

 

\----------

 

Later that evening, Diamond and Silver had found a nice little cliff by a lake near town to hang out at and practice their secret hoofshake in private. They remained there for the rest of the day, all the way until Celestia's sun began to set, and Luna's moon began to rise.

"Hey, Diamond?" Silver asked her. "There's something that's been bothering me. How come you never gave that tiara to your mother?"

"Oh. Uh..." Diamond shifted her eyes around. "I decided to keep this one for myself. You know, since I got my cutie mark because of it. I can always make her another one, right?"

"... I... guess... You've been talking about your cutie mark an awful lot today. You even insisted on part of our hoofshake being that our cutie marks touch. You know?"

"Well, why wouldn't I be? It's only the most magnificent cutie mark in all of Equestria! And I refuse to let anypony... tell me... otherwise... I... won't..." Diamond started to gloat with a strong air of confidence, but Silver could hear the tone drift off into sadness, quickly losing her breath and taking in slight gasps of air as she tried to keep talking.

"Diamond... Are you feeling okay?" Diamond remained silent and kept her mouth clenched shut, as if it would hide the water that was forming in her eyes. "Are you still upset about your cutie mark?"

Diamond began sniffling. She nodded quickly as she wiped her muzzle. "Mm-hmm... Is it that obvious?"

"Diamond... I... I don't want to see you sad. I like you better when you're confident. You make me feel... you make me feel like I can be confident, too."

"... Really?"

"Yeah. So please, if there's anything I can do to help you feel better, tell me, and I'll do it. I promise."

"Well... I... I want everypony to love my cutie mark. I want them all to think I'm really, really special. Incredibly special. That's what I want. But I guess that sounds really selfish of me..."

"I don't think so. Wanting to be loved is far from selfish. And if you want everypony to think you're special, then I vow to help you make it so!"

"Heh. You sound kind of different."

"If I do, then it's probably thanks to you."

Diamond and Silver smiled at each other. The two neared, and each gave the other a big hug. Both fillies continued to smile on their way back to their homes. But before they parted ways...

"Hey, Silver. You wanna do our secret hoofshake again before we each go home?"

"Sure! Ready?"

The two fillies gave each other a high brohoof with both forehooves, followed by a low brohoof. They knocked their elbows together, then ended with their cutie marks bumping into each other, all the while chanting, "Bump! Bump! Sugar Lump! Rump!" The two giggled at how silly their little ritual was, and waved goodbye before galloping to their respective homes.

Silver's parents normally weren't home at this hour, but this time, Silver was actually wishing they wouldn't be. She'd be far too embarrassed if they saw her looking this happy.

 

\----------

 

"Alright," said Diamond the next day. "You see that colt over there?"

"You means Snails?" Silver asked, remembering his name from a previous day of school.

"Yeah. I want you to go over to him and make fun of him. Okay?"

"Uh... I don't know, Diamond... That doesn't sound very nice."

"Hey, if you want ponies to think you're confident, then you need to show them that you're not afraid of them. And the best way to do that is to hold your ground and insult them to their faces. As long as you don't run away, they'll be intimidated by you and will think twice before teasing you in the future. Think about it. If you get a good reputation for being fearless, then mean fillies like Checkered Flag won't pick on you anymore."

"Do you really think so?"

"I know so! It worked for me yesterday, right?"

"Yeah, but then Mr. Flag came along and took her away. Who knows what she could've done if he hadn't?"

"Hey. Trust me, okay? Now go ahead and give it a shot."

Silver groaned. "Okay, if you say so."

"Eyes open. Head held high. Don't break eye contact." Diamond whispered some last-minute advice as Silver approached Snails.

"Um, excuse me," Silver timidly greeted. Snails was busy munching on some grass and didn't notice Silver's quiet voice.

"LOUDER!" Diamond whispered.

"Uh... *ahem* EXCUSE ME."

"Hmmpff?" Snails asked as he raised his head, still chewing on some grass he yanked out of the ground.

"I... um..." she turned to look at Diamond, who hastily nodded back to her. "You're, uh... I think you're, um... a little bit dumb."

Diamond facehoofed.

Snails swallowed his food. "Daww shucks, everypony thinks that."

"They do? Oh. Then, um... I think you're really, REALLY dumb." Silver flinched a little after saying that.

"Uhh... okay."

"Uggh!" Diamond loudly moaned as she joined the two. "Alright, Silver. Let me show you how it's done. *ahem* Hey, Snails. Nice cutie mark..."

"Ahyuck. Thanks! I like--"

"What does it symbolize? That you're as SLOW as one? Or that you hide at the first sight of trouble?"

"Wha? No, I jus' like takin' care o' bugs..."

"Is that so? Well, I hope when you grow up and marry `em, you have lots of horrifying children together."

Snails groaned a little, then turned to walk away, not wanting to put up with that anymore.

"Ha! See, Silver? It's all a battle of wit! Never hesitate, and always have good comebacks! Ponies fear those that are smarter than them. You're smart, right?"

"I guess," said Silver. "I couldn't help but notice that you singled out his cutie mark, though."

"It looked like the perfect target! Cutie marks mean everything to a pony, and if you can make a pony feel really bad about theirs, then you've got them right in your hooves!"

Silver couldn't understand what it was Diamond was trying to do. It seemed to her like Diamond wanted everypony to feel inferior about their cutie marks in comparison to hers. Why did Diamond feel so self-conscious about her own cutie mark? What were her real reasons for being ashamed of it?  
Well, if being respected and feared kept Diamond from feeling sad, then that's all that mattered to Silver. But she still wanted to get to the bottom of Diamond's self-pity.

"Hey, uh, Diamond? I was wondering if you could introduce me to some ponies."

"Huh? Sure, I guess so. Who'd you have in mind?"

"Um, your parents. I'd like to meet them, actually."

"W... What?? No. Um, I mean... You can't."

"Why not?"

"My parents are the owners of a big corporation in Hoofington. I hardly ever get to see them since they get home very late, and they've made it very clear that they don't like being visited while they're at work. When I was little, I tried going to see them, and they got mad because I walked so far on my own. So introducing you to them isn't really possible right now."

"Oh. Well, what about at your cute ceañera this Sunday? They'll at least be there, won't they? They are the ones hosting the party, after all."

"... Maybe..."

Silver was surprised to hear that there were other ponies like her; those whose parents were too busy to spend any time with their foals. Silver knew exactly how that felt, and the knowledge of it only made her sympathize with Diamond even more.

"So, uh..." Silver tried to think of a way to take Diamond's mind off of things. "Who should we go after next? For my confidence training?"

"Hmm..." Diamond thought. "I've got somepony in mind... you know that magenta unicorn in our class? Her name is Berry Pinch, but she doesn't like the fact that she was named after her mother, so all of her friends call her 'Ruby'. I want you to go up to her and start addressing her by her real name ad nauseum, just to tick her off."

"Okay. I'll try."

For the rest of the day, Diamond taught Silver how to act confident in front of other ponies. At least, what she thought was acting confident. Silver didn't care that what she was doing was kind of mean. For the first time in her life, she felt brave. If this worked the way Diamond promised it would, Silver would never have to be afraid of anypony again.

 

\----------

 

"What just happened?" Diamond asked as Silver returned to her with a defeated look on her face. "You were doing so well until now!"

"Sorry, Diamond," Silver apologized. "But Cyan Skies didn't really have anything about her that I could make fun of. Nothing about her really stood out."

"What about her cutie mark? Surely there was something you could've said about that!"

"I thought of that, too. But... that's the thing. Cyan doesn't exactly... HAVE... a cutie mark."

Diamond stared at Silver blankly for what felt like a whole minute. "... What did you say?"

"Her flank didn't have anything on it. Not unless her cutie mark was the exact same color as her coat."

"Wait, wait, wait... so you're telling me... that there is a foal in the same grade as us, who DOESN'T have her cutie mark yet?"

"Actually, she's not the only one. Remember? There are two earth ponies in our own class that don't have them, either. You never noticed? There's that one with the glasses, and the one with the pink ribbon..."

"You mean there are ACTUALLY ponies the SAME age as us, who aren't even REMOTELY special yet?!"

"Woah. Calm down, Diamond."

"This is perfect!"

"Wait, what?"

"Don't you see?! If I invite a pony my age that doesn't have a cutie mark, and hang around her during the whole party, then my cutie mark will look even grander in comparison!"

"Do you really think that will work?"

"Well, duh! What are the other ponies going to notice more? Epic, beautiful perfection? Or nothing? Perfection. Nothing. Beauty. Nothing. It's obvious which one is far superior."

"Okay... but which pony would you be hanging around?"

"Somepony I can outwit, of course. That one with the glasses? Twist? She's too much of a bookworm. No, I'll be targeting the OTHER one... The farm pony..."

 

\----------

 

Over the course of the next couple days, Diamond and Silver occasionally poked fun at Apple Bloom for not having a cutie mark. Distressed over this embarrassment, Apple Bloom tried desperately during those days to get her cutie mark before the party arrived, practicing all sorts of different activities to see if she were good at any of them. But nothing... the day of the party came, and Apple Bloom was still a "blank flank".

Party day arrived, and everypony was gathered at Sugarcube Corner, a popular sweet shop run by the Cakes. Diamond Tiara found Apple Bloom standing near a wall at the party, a piercing gaze in her eyes as she approached the mark-less filly. This was her chance. Once everypony saw how un-special Apple Bloom was, they'd all see how great Diamond was in comparison. Then she'd never have to feel ashamed of her cutie mark ever again.

"Well, well, well..." Diamond chanted. "Look who's here."

"Nice outfit," said Silver, practicing the sarcasm Diamond had taught her.

Apple Bloom stumbled, trying to come up with an excuse for why she was wearing a table cloth as a dress. "Jus' somethin' I, uh... pulled together las' minute."

"It really shows off your cutie mark," Diamond lied. "Oh. Wait. That's right! You don't have one..."

"... Ah have a cutie mark..."

"What??" Silver asked, worried that Diamond's plans would be ruined. "Since when?!"

"Since, uh... earlier today."

"Oh, REALLY?" Diamond asked, very suspicious of this turn of events. "Let's see it."

"... Ah... ah shouldn't. I couldn't! Mah cutie mark is so unbelievably amazing, Ah'm afraid that if ah show it off, everyone will start payin' attention ta' me instead a' you. Outshined at yer own cute ceañera?? Can you imagine how embarrassin' that would be?"

Diamond winced and bit her lower lip. The thought of actually having her thunder stolen was the exact opposite of what she had planned. Even if Apple Bloom was bluffing, there was no way she could afford to take that chance. "Uh... forget it. I didn't really wanna see it, anyway."

"Okay! Well, Ah'm gonna go mingle. Enjoy your party!" Apple Bloom thought she was home free, but just as she was walking away from the two of them, she tripped over her makeshift dress and crashed into the turntable, stopping the music and ripping the "dress" off. Everypony turned to see what had happened to the music, only to see a blank-flanked filly hunched over on the ground.

This was perfect. This was the most opportune time for Diamond to put her plan into action. Everypony was looking right at Apple Bloom. If Diamond could make her look like even more of a fool, then Diamond herself would seem positively radiant by contrast.

Silver, wanting to help out as best she could rather than being quiet as usual, was the first to speak. "WOW, that IS an amazing cutie mark!" she joked.

"Nice try!" Diamond ridiculed. "BLANK FLANK!!" Diamond and Silver began to giggle. Diamond's plan was a complete success. Everypony in the crowd, adults and foals alike, began to giggle along and chant the phrase "blank flank". But then, something totally unexpected happened.

"You got a problem with blank flanks?!" came a raspy voice from behind the crowd. From beneath a nearby table, two angry looking foals emerged: an orange pegasus accompanied by a white unicorn. "I SAID..." the pegasus continued. "You got a PROBLEM with blank flanks?!"

Diamond couldn't believe what she was hearing. How could anypony NOT have a problem with blank flanks? To be that old, and not have her cutie mark yet? That was downright shameful!  
Silver stepped in to defend Diamond. "The problem IS that she's, like, totally not special!"

"No..." said the white unicorn as she moved to Apple Bloom's side. "It means she's full of potential!"

"It means she could be great at anything!" added the pegasus, who joined her friend. "The possibilities are, like, ENDLESS."

"She could be a great scientist, or an amazing artist, or a famous writer. She could even be Mayor of Ponyville someday!"

"And she's not stuck being stuck-up like YOU two!"

"Hey!" Diamond yelled, offended at being called stuck-up. "This is MY party, why are you two on HER side?!"

"Because..." the pegasus began. She and her unicorn friend turned to their sides to show everypony that they, too, were blank flanks.

Apple Bloom gasped. "You don't have cutie marks, either?! Ah though ah was the only one!"

"We thought WE were the only two!"

From the back of the crowd, Twilight Sparkle stepped forward. Everypony knew who Twilight was. She was the town's newest resident, sent by Princess Celestia herself, and she'd saved the town numerous times during her stay. "I, for one, think you are three very lucky fillies."

"Lucky?!" Diamond scoffed, still totally baffled at what was happening around her. "How can THEY be lucky?!"

"They still get to experience the thrill of discovering who they are, and what they're meant to be!"

"And they've got all the time in the world ta' figure it out!" added Apple Bloom's older sister, Applejack. "NOT just an afternoon."

All the foals at the party began to clamor around Apple Bloom and the other two blank fillies. The thought of how much promise came with being a blank flank had never occurred to any of them. They had all done their best to discover their special talents as soon as possible, just like what Apple Bloom was doing. They were all actually kind of jealous of her now, and one filly even went so far as to suggest that maybe she'd gotten her own cutie mark too soon.

"Hey! What's everypony doing?!" Diamond shouted, droned out by the clamor. "This is MY party! Everypony's SUPPOSED to be paying attention to ME!!!"

Silver didn't know what to do now. She hadn't seen Diamond this upset since the first day they met. She was worried Diamond might break down again. She thought quickly, and tried to cheer her up. "Whatever! We still think you're losers! Right, Diamond Tiara? Bump! Bump! Sugar... Lu...?"

"Not now, Silver Spoon..."

 

Diamond Tiara spent the rest of her party watching it from the stairs with a defeated look on her face. Silver spent this entire time right by her side. It was the least she could do while coming up with a way to help her friend feel better.

Hours passed, and the sun had begun to set. Everypony else had already gone home, and not one of them bothered to say goodbye to Diamond Tiara. The excitement surrounding Apple Bloom had made them completely forget about her. Diamond stood silently in the center of the store. Shredded confetti and the like were scattered on the floor all around her, just like her hopes.

"Hey, Diamond..." Silver began. "It's not that big a deal... right? I mean..."

Before Silver could finish, Diamond began walking for the exit, all too much like the time they first met. Only this time, Diamond didn't even once glance back.

Silver sighed. It was only at this moment that she realized she knew nothing about friendship. She had no idea how she was supposed to handle a situation like this. She wanted to help her friend, but at the same time, felt as though Diamond needed some time alone.

Alone? Wait a minute. Weren't Diamond's parents supposed to be at that party? Weren't they the ones hosting it for her? Wouldn't they have done something if they'd seen their own daughter looking so miserable? Where were they?

"Excuse me!" sang a cheerful voice from behind Silver. A pink earth mare was sweeping the floors, and Silver was in the way. Pinkie Pie was her name; she was an employee at Sugarcube Corner, known all over town for being hyper, having an intense love for parties and sweets, and apparently possessing precognition.

"Oh, sorry!" Silver apologized as she backed up. "Hey, um... You didn't happen to see Diamond Tiara's parents at the party, did you?"

"Nope!" Pinkie responded, sounding very sure of herself. She was also known for having the names and appearances of everypony in town completely memorized, so she'd known if they were there or not. "Those two weren't even on the guest list!"

"They... weren't? They weren't invited to their own daughter's party??"

"That's right! Diamond Tiara specifically asked me not to invite them!"

"She asked you? So, you're the one who was hosting the party? Not her parents?"

"Well, duh! I'm the one that works here, not them! But why do you ask? Didn't Diamond tell you?" By the time their conversation was over, Pinkie had finished sweeping, and was heading back to the storage cabinet.

Why would Diamond lie about who was hosting the party? Why does Diamond always lose her cool every time her parents are brought up? Silver should have felt betrayed, knowing that Diamond was lying and keeping secrets. But it only made Silver feel even more worried about her.

 

\----------

 

The next sunrise marked the beginning of Monday, a new school week. It would also be the first time Silver Spoon was ever late to class. She'd been waiting at the usual street corner for Diamond Tiara so that they could walk to school together like they'd been doing, but Diamond didn't show. Giving up on her friend arriving, she galloped to school as quickly as she could. Silver may have been late, but at least she wouldn't be absent.

The attendance of the class was kept track of by a sticker-covered chart in the corner of the room. Students who attended every day received bonus points for that quarter, and stickers would be placed next to their names for each day attended. Silver took a close look at the chart. Apple Bloom, Archer, Noi, Piña Colada, Sun Glimmer, Tootsie Flute, Twist... and herself. Eight of the classroom's nine desks were filled. Diamond Tiara was missing.

All day long, the sound of Miss Cheerilee's voice was muffled out by Silver's racing thoughts. She had never been more worried about Diamond Tiara than she was right now. She feared the worst... What if she and her parents had suddenly moved away without warning? What if she'd gotten ill off of those bad cupcakes at the party? What if she was injured in a horrible accident? Or what if all of her built-up grief had convinced her to... end it?

Silver Spoon shook her head and beat her skull with her own hoof. She absolutely did not want to think about that sort of thing. But not wanting to made her think about it more, and the more she did, the more she started to believe it. All of it. That school day felt like it lasted for years.

Almost as if its regular occurrence were some form of miracle, the bell rang. Silver had convinced herself that it never would, that she'd be stuck there for eternity in an endless limbo of fear and worry. She was the first one out the door. What had Cheerilee been teaching that day? What was their homework assignment?

Who cared?

 

\----------

 

Silver Spoon reached Diamond Tiara's house in minutes. The front door was locked, but Silver could see a light coming from a single window. She knocked for several minutes, but nopony answered. Frantic, she searched around the house for an unlocked window, and found a small one that led into the basement. It didn't have a lock, just a latch, which was easily undone. A grown pony would never be able to fit, but Silver slid in just fine. She climbed down some conveniently placed boxes and onto the floor, and hurried for the stairs.

Diamond's house was very fancy, just like Silver's. She could tell from the clock-in counter near the front door that the servants who worked there were all on break, and weren't scheduled to be back for a couple hours. Silver's servants were never all on break at once, lest she be left alone and unprotected. Why would Diamond's parents be so thoughtless as to schedule them that way? Didn't they care?

Silver quickly found the stairs leading to the upper floor, and began searching in all of its rooms. At last, she came to a pink door, slightly ajar with a crack of light seeping into the hallway. There was a sound that became more and more apparent as she neared it. Muffled crying. Silver slowly pushed the door open to look inside.

Diamond Tiara was sobbing into her pillow. Her tiara was lying on the floor, and Silver could see the nick in the wall where Diamond had thrown it. A dim light shone from the lamp on the nightstand, the light Silver had seen in the window. Diamond didn't even notice Silver's presence.

"Diamond...?" Silver meekly said.

Diamond gasped and immediately flung herself around, clenching her pillow tightly and staring at the intruder with wide, soaking eyes. "S-Silver?! What are you doing here?! How did you get in?!"

"You didn't come to school today, so I got worried. Like, REALLY worried! And I snuck in through your basement window."

"You... you shouldn't have come here today. I'm not... I'm not feeling so well..."

"... Please..." Silver stared at Diamond for a few seconds, wondering whether or not it was okay to be forceful with her own best friend. Until now, Silver had been taught confidence by laughing in the face of all potential threats. Those were the only problems she had until today. But the loss of her friendship with Diamond? That was the biggest threat of all. "Diamond... it's time you told me the truth. No more secrets. Okay?"

Diamond's eyes began to water all over again. She shut her eyes to try and keep the tears in, but to no avail. Silver climbed onto the bed and sat beside her, putting one of her forelegs around Diamond's neck. This seemed to calm her down considerably. They both sat silently for who knew how long, Silver patiently waiting until Diamond was ready to speak.

"A-Alright..." Diamond finally mumbled, as she took in one more strong sniffle. "You know that tiara I made?"

"Yes?"

"When I made that tiara, I felt it was the greatest thing I'd ever done. And as soon as I did... my cutie mark appeared... At first, I was really, really happy... I thought it was the greatest day of my life... And for the first time... the very first time since the day I was born... I actually believed I could make my parents feel proud of me..."

"D... Diamond...?"

"I mean, I got my cutie mark for Celestia's sake! My special talent is amazing, and unique! But when I tried to give the tiara to my mom... she..." Diamond struggled to keep her sobbing under control. She began to breathe heavily, and had even begun to grow cold, prompting Silver to hold her closer. "She told me... that she could never wear such a... TACKY trinket to work...! That... that her employees would lose respect for her if she did...!! I... I got up early that day, so I could give it to her before she went to work! But... she... she...!!!"

Diamond could no longer contain herself. She dug her face into Silver's chest and just let everything out. Silver held Diamond's head tightly, stroking her mane and trying her best to calm her down. Silver asked herself if she was doing the right thing. She wanted to make Diamond feel better. Instead, she was only crying even more. But somehow, the fact that Diamond confided in her enough to tell her these things was all she needed.

Diamond continued to curse her parents, even with her head beneath Silver's chin. "You... you know... my parents have never been to ANY of my school plays...?! I used to take ballet lessons, too... but they never showed up to a single recital...! They... they haven't even noticed my... my cutie mark yet...! I didn't invite them to my party... because I knew they wouldn't come to that, either...!! Just like on all my birthdays...!!! That party... that was my only chance! My only chance to make everypony else love me, like my parents never have! But... but now they all hate me... Everypony hates me now...!!!

"Silver... why?? Don't my parents love me...? Why do they keep ignoring me...?" Silver had no idea what to say. She, too, had parents who always had to work. But at least they gave her money to have fun with, and they would never miss one of their own daughter's birthday parties. Silver felt incredibly selfish for thinking she was just as bad off as Diamond...

"I..." Diamond continued. "... I hate them... Why do they always leave me all alone...? ...I HATE them...!!" Diamond's breathing and sobbing both picked up to such a rapid pace, that Silver thought she was going to have some sort of stroke or heart attack or something. What should she do? How can she save her friend from her misery? … How can she show Diamond that she's not alone, and that somepony does still care about her?

Her body acted before her mind knew what it was doing. Silver lifted Diamond's head up, and lightly placed her lips right on hers. Diamond's eyes grew wide, and the tears seemed to stop as suddenly as a drizzle would. Their lips stayed put for several moments, before Silver finally released them.

"S... S... Silver... what... why did...?"

"Diamond... I am so sorry... I just... I couldn't stand seeing you so sad... It made me sad, too... It made me feel awful that I ever once considered your life to be perfect... I was so thoughtless... I never understood how you felt... I... I'm so very, very sorr--"

Diamond wouldn't hear any more of that. Though her face didn't show it, she had just been overwhelmed with a happiness she'd never thought possible. Silver Spoon loved Diamond even more than her own parents did. And they both knew it, too. Diamond interrupted Silver's apology by grabbing the back of Silver's head and pulling it to her own, silencing her with her own lips.

Silver was surprised at first, but almost immediately accepted Diamond's response. She took off her glasses and placed them on the nightstand next to the bed. The two of them were completely wrapped in the forelegs of the other, each stroking the mane of their friend. The coldness that filled Diamond before quickly grew warm, and warmer still until they both started to sweat a little. Their soft chests were pressed so tightly against each other, that they could feel their own tiny little hearts beating rapidly in sync.

After what must have been several minutes, Silver broke the kiss and began planting small pecks on Diamond's cheeks. They tasted faintly of salt, due to all the crying she had done, but Silver didn't mind one bit. Her kisses would clean those tears from Diamond's face, leaving only her beautiful expression.

Once all the tears were gone, Diamond smiled a genuine, happy smile, and returned the favor by nuzzling Silver's chin. Silver smiled as well, and the two moved in even closer to share a simple embrace. Diamond almost felt like crying all over again, but this time, they'd be formed from joy.

The two fillies' relationship was far from one-sided. Silver had spent her whole life feeling like she couldn't do anything for anypony, that she was wrongfully treated like she was special despite her own lack of effort. With Diamond, those feelings of uselessness went away. Diamond, on the other hoof, had been neglected and ignored since birth, which caused her to develop a mentality that drove others off. Silver was the first pony she'd ever met who treated her with honest, genuine kindness, and was the first to ever truly show any form of respect for her.

"Silver...?" Diamond whispered. "What about everypony else?"

"Forget about them," Silver softly advised. "It doesn't matter what they think of you or me."

"Doesn't matter...? But... what about my parents...?"

"You don't need them. You never have. They don't deserve a daughter like you." Silver held Diamond's head and pressed it against her own. "I'm the only one you need. I'll never leave you alone. I promise."

"...You've... changed... Thank you, Silver... Thank you so much..."

"Diamond?"

"Yeah?"

"I love your cutie mark. I think it's the most beautiful cutie mark I've ever seen. It's even prettier than the princess's."

"... You... you can't mean that..."

"I do."

The two of them remained silent for the remainder of the evening, having fallen asleep in the other's embrace. Even as control of their facial muscles were stolen by their dreams, neither of their smiles ceased.

 

When the servants returned from their long break, they found the two fillies sleeping, but did not wake them. They had always secretly wished for Diamond to have a better life, one that would make up for all the neglect they knew she was shown. And Diamond had never looked happier than she did now. They even called the servants at Silver Spoon's house to tell them she was spending the night there. Theirs was a peace that should not be broken.

Diamond Tiara had wanted to make everypony love her and her cutie mark in order to mask the horrible ways her parents treated her. They'd left a hole in her heart, one big enough to fit the love of one's own parents, so she tried to win the love of everypony else in order to fill it, and resorted to desperate tactics in order to do so, ultimately causing her downfall. She never expected that the love she'd been searching for would come from just one pony.

Still haunted by the neglect of her parents, Diamond Tiara's inferiority complex remains, and thus continues to make desperate attempts at making herself look better than everypony else, to no avail. Silver Spoon, for her own reasons, continues to help her, aware of the fact that their attitudes will ward off any other friendships that may present themselves. Neither were ever taught the social skills needed to make friends the proper way, but they are content with simply having each other.


End file.
